Experiments in Art and Education

Monthly Archives: February 2012

So I had this idea…a really really good idea. 11 Students will use the Modern Art Timeline to inspire a print exchange. Students will be assigned a period from the time line, research it (do a presentation), find a way to create a design inspired by the their art period. Each student will create an edition of 15 prints. That means each student will get a copy of every other persons print and there will be 4 sets left over. I will keep one and the other three suites (sets of prints) will be auctioned at the High School Art Show. Students will decided how to donate the proceeds.

We began the project a few weeks into the quarter and students are now beginning to print. I am very very excited about the project so far.

Thanks to a couple of supportive staff members Art 1 was able to draw from a model for two class periods. Well actually 3, the first day they each took turns sitting for about 20 minutes as a way to become acquainted with drawing from a model. The second day a teacher volunteer came for the full class time and the student were able to do a practice contour drawing and begin there long term project. On the third day when our second volunteer came the students did gesture drawing exercise for half of the class. One of my favorite exercises to do is have the model strike a pose and then have the students take her pose and stay in it for a full minute, scanning their own body, feeling the tensed and relaxed areas, and then they draw the pose. I think the greater understanding you have of your body the better you will understand the body, the better you can draw a body.

The final contour line drawing with water color washes came out pretty swell in the end.

This was our first IB critique of the quater. Of course we only got through 3 of the 5 students. There always seems to be so much to say. The student have really internalized the 4 step method to criticism and embraced the idea of what we have been calling the “silent critique”. The maker is not permitted to talk. The rest of the class goes through the 4 step process of description, analysis, and interpretation and judgement. Ultimately the maker can ask 3 questions of the class if we did not address an area of the makers concern. I find this method helpful at this level of IB because often critiques turn into the maker talking about what they “coulda, shoulda, woulda,” instead of the thing they did (the art work).

Overall the observation and perception abilities of the students in this class have grown so much since the beginning of the year. So much so that, we are able to have incredibly sophisticated conversations during these critiques which leaves me feeling drained but so inspired.

Art 21 Exclusives

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A Bit About Me

Currently I am teaching at an International school in Venezuela. I am fresh out of a three year MFA program and very excited about incorporating contemporary practices and themes into my elementary and second art art curriculum.